NEBRASKA CITY – Tony Osborne, 57, of Lincoln was sentenced Monday to mandatory minimums under Nebraska’s habitual criminal laws.

District Judge Julie Smith sentenced Osborne to 10 to 30 years for possession of 24 grams of methamphetamine. She noted that trial evidence showed that Osborne acquired the meth at different locations through the day and Smith said it was for the purpose of distributing it.

Defense attorney Keith Kollasch said, due to Osborne’s age and health problems, stacking mandatory minimums would mean a life sentence for him.

He said Osborne has spent a significant portion of his life incarcerated, beginning as a juvenile. After his release on parole, Kollasch said, Osborne found it hard to find work and integrate back into society. He said he fell into companionship with others who had been recently released.

Osborne was one of three people arrested following a traffic stop in March of 2021.

The judge allowed Osborne to serve time for convictions of possession and failure to pay drug taxes at the same time, but his 10-year minimum will not start until his has finished a current seven-year sentence.

With good time calculations and the habitual criminal conviction, Osborne has a tentative release date of 20 years. Judge Smith said he would serve 30 years without the good time calculation.

Prior to trial, Osborne argued that prosecutors could not ensure a proper chain of evidence because a Nebraska State Patrol technician was investigated for removing drug evidence from the secured state patrol facility.

Judge Smith said the fact that evidence remained in state patrol custody is sufficient.